Oct. 20, 2000

"The higher you want to climb, the more you need leadership. The greater the impact you want to make, the greater the influence needs to be." Coach Grentz loves to use quotes to teach and drive home a point.

The emphasis of the first month of the practice is going to be on leadership. If you have a favorite quote on leadership, send it in and if Coach Grentz uses your quote in practice, you will win two tickets to an upcoming home game. Send your quote to grentzshow@athletics.uiuc.edu.

The Wednesday practice ended with five on none and five on five drills with a continued emphasis on spacing, and communication on the court. The team also worked on fast break and the three-man weave.

Illinois freshman Anne O'Neil has been getting used to practice at the collegiate level. The all-time leading scoer in Iowa High School history has been observing the veterans and picking up the drills, especially from the returning starting guards Allison Curtin and Shavonna Hunter.

"They're great role models," O'Neil said of Hunter and Curtin. "I've enjoyed watching their hard work and intensity. I've tried to duplicate how I need to work on defense."

What is her impression of the first few days of practice? "They've been unbelievably intense compared to a high school practice," she said. "Everything is much more fast-paced and right now we have an extremely quick team with a lot of hustle and desire."

O'Neil, like the rest of the newcomers spent the summer in Champaign working with her future teammates. She worked on conditioning and her all-around game. That has helped bring the group together, she says. "The atmosphere has been awesome. You can tell that everyone is working toward a common goal. We are able to work together to win games and work toward the national championship, which is our ultimate goal.

O'Neil signed early and has been looking forward to her experience in Champaign. "Now that I'm here at Illinois I want my dreams to come true."

O'Neil gives Illinois some options in the backcourt. She has the ability to play and one of the perimeter positions. "I want to be as versatile as I possibly can be. I can play any of the guard spots -- 1, 2 oe 3. I don't have a preference. I just want to be out there helping the team win."

The Illini practice Thursday from 3-5.